Rail.



W. A. PRAHL.

RAIL.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 24, 1914. l 1 l 22 1 5%. Patented Dec. 22, 1914.

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RAIL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec, 22, 191%.

Application filed April 24, 1914:. Serial No. $34,174:. I

and State of Utah, have invented new and useful Improvements in Rails, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in rails, and especiallyin means for connecting the meeting ends of rails.

In carrying out my invention it is -my purpose to provide a rail chair having side members to engage with the opposite faces of the meeting ends of the rails, and to provide a' key between the upper edges of the said side members and the underfaces of the heads of the rails to secure the chair to the rails and to join the meeting ends of the rails. v ,b

With the above and other objects'in View, the improvement resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts set forth in the following specification an'dfalling within the scope of the appended claims.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a perspective view of two rails constructed and connected in accordanoevwith thepresent in vention, Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional View through one of the rails and looking toward the end of the rail said chair being in their normally spread condition,"preparatory to locking the same to the heads ofthe rails, Fig. 3 is a similar sectional view but showing the arms in engagement with the rail and locked thereto,

Fig. is a sectional View similar to Fig.v

of the sides of the chair the insertion or removal vthe chair, Fig. 5;is a

2, but showing one bent to permit of of the rails from sectional view which the chair is secured upon an ordinary rail, Fig. 6 is a sectional view takenv in a line with one of the connecting bolts and one of the securing spikes, and Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional view illustrating the manner in which securing plates may be i 1 arranged to engage with the opposite sides 7 and bolts against rotation. ,50

the underfaces of their oi the chair and to secure the locking nuts In the preferred form of my device, I provide two rails, 11, each of the ordinary construction except that the said rails have heads at the opposite sides of their webs tudinally extending channels 2 2. Prefcounty of Salt Lake reception of bolts 10 which are chair, the arms of the illustrating the manner in formed with longie I erably the underfaces of the heads are enlarged, providing angular portions, indicated by the numerals 3, the dotted lines showing the ordinary formation of the under-faces of the heads, and the said enlargements 8 may be arranged only at the ends of the rails.

Thenumerali which includes a flanges of the meeting ends of the rails rest, inturned angular flanges 6 having their ends formed with vertical plates 7 which, when forced into engagement with the rails,

designates a chair member base 5 upon which the base fully fill the fishing spaces to the opposite o sides of the rails, the flanges 6 conforming to the shape of the base flanges of the rails. The members 7 are centrally channeled, as

at 8, and at their reduced portions are formed with openings 9 which. register with similar openings in the webs 01' the rails, the said openings beingjprovided for the provided with the usual securing nuts 11.

By reference to, Fig, 2 of the drawings, it will be .noted that the railfengaging'sides of the chair are at an; outward angle with relation to each other, the connecting por tion 12, between the flanges 6 and the base 5, being formed of some suitable spring metal, so that the side membersof the chair are normally, as stated, at van angle and also Lwhereby one or both of the said sides may be bent to permit of the insertion or removal of the said rails, as indicated in Fig. 4 ofthe drawings. The upper edges of the plates 7 are beveled or inclined, as at 13, to agree'with the inclined surfaces 3 upon the underfaces of the rails, and the said upper edgesof the members 7 are formed with longitudinally nels 14, which are of a width correspond ing with the width of the channels 2, and which have their lower walls beveled or extending chaninclined in the same direction as the upper engaging sides of rails. The numerals15 designate key members which are adapted to be inserted within the registering channels 2 of the rails, and l of thechair members. These keys correspond in shape with the walls of 1'5 tofore described, having its vertical memthe vchannels, fully filling the said channels, and the keys are of a desired length to entirely pass through the channels in the side members of the chairs.

bers-9 providedupon their upper inclined 1 edges with key-ways or channels 141 and beingforced into engagement with the sides of the rails through the medium'of the nuts 10 and the bolts 11. The key, which is designated by the numeral 17, has its lower face "j and its sides conforming to the walls of the channel 14, but the said key preferably has its upper face rounded toward its sides, as indicated by the numeral 18. The key 17 may be slightly wedge shaped, if desired, from its op'positefaces, itbeing of an equal width throughout and the rounded faces 18 of the said keys'forcibly contacting with the angular underfaces of thehead of the rail provides an effective locking means. for holding the chair-upon the rails and for connecting the ends of the rails.

I have found it desirable to provide a spike'of a special construction and locking my improved chair upon the ties. The said spike, indicated by the numeral 19, has its head'QO, upon what may be termed-its inner side, of the ordinary construction, that is,

the underfa'ce of the head from its juncture with the shank is rounded, conforming to the rounded upper portion of the flanges 6 at their connections l2'with the base portion of the chair. What I will term the rear face of the spike is, however, formed with an an- 1 gularly disposed-outwardly projecting mem- .'ber"21, the underface ofwhich being hori- "zontally straight and being either serrated or plain, the sides of the member 21 projecting, at I the lower portion of the said i member beyond the sides of the shank. This I portion 21 limits the downward movement of the spike when the tie 22 and the enlarged portion 21 holds the head of the spike against danger of disengagement from the chair, as

well as preventing the rotary movement of v. the spike or danger of the same becoming lnloo'sened'oraccidentally removed from the tie. ".As illustrated in the drawings, the

' meeting ends of the rails are cut'at an-angle .of about .-forty-five degrees so. that no objection'able gap will be left between the rails when the same are contracted by cold and also whereby the treads of the wheels of the rolling stock will travel directly from one of the rails onto the other rail without danger of sinking, and also wherein the shock and jar usually incident to the passage of the train over the'joint will be obviated.

- In Fig. 7 I have illustrated a means for securing the chair upon the ties, and for locking the nuts and bolts which contact the side members of the chair with. the rails. In this figure, the chair 0 has its upper edges engaging beneath the heads of the rails, and the side members thereof secured to the web of the rail through the medium of a bolt B passing therethrough and engaged by a nut N. Plates P each provide a base which is formed by overlapping the strip from which the plate is formed and an angular extension or lip L which engages with the angular portions of the sides of the chair. The base portion is provided with an opening through which pass spikes or lag screws S which enter the ties 'I. It will be noted that the respective lip portions of the plate underlie one the head of the bolt, the other the side of the nut, so that the nut and bolt cannot be removed from the rail and chair until each one of the plates has been removed from the tie.

From the above description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the simplicity of the device, as well as the advantages thereof will, it is thought, be perfectly apparent to those skilled in the art to which such invention appertains without further detailed description.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is: g

1. In combination with the meeting ends of two rails, of a chair, said chair including a base upon whichthe rails rest, the base being formed with side members which conform to and engage with the sides of the rails, the vertical members of said sides being provided with longitudinally extending channels and wedge keys inserted longitudinally within the channels and contacting with the underfaces of the heads of the rails.

2. In combination with the meeting ends of two rails, each having the underface of its head at the opposite sides of its web formed with longitudinally extending channels, of a rail chair including a base upon which the rail ends rest and having sides conforming to the shape of the sides of the rails and engaging therewith, the upper edges of the sides being formed with channels which register with the channels in the rails, when the sides of the chair are forced against the sides of the rails, and keys inserted longitudinally within the said registering channels.

3. In combination with the meeting ends of two rails, each having the underface of its head at the opposite sides of its web 1,122,1sa is! formed with longitudinally extending channels, of a chair including a base upon which the rail ends rest and having sides conforming to the shape of the'ends of the rails and engaging therewith, the upper edges of the sides being formed with channels which register with the channels in the rails, when the sides of: the chair are forced against the sides of the rails, keys inserted longitudinally within the said registering channels, said keys having bendable ends whichare adapted to be forced into contact with the ends of the side members of the chair.

4. In combination with the meeting ends of two rails, of a chair including a base upon which the rails rest, said chair having sides shaped to conform to the sides of the rails and adapted to engage with the said sides of the rails, the sides of the chair being normally at an outward angle with relation to each other, means comprising nuts and bolts for forcing the said sides'toward each other and into engagement with the sides of the rails, vand wedge members between the upper edges of the sides of the chair and the underfaces of the heads of the rails for having sides which agree with the shape of the sides of the rails and with which they.

are adapted to engage the upper edges of the sides being inclined and adapted to engage with the inclined surfaces provided upon the underfaces of the rails at the ends thereof, the said upper edges of the, sides of the chair being provided with longitudinally extending channels which aline with the channels in the heads of the rails, and wedge keys insertedlongitudinally within the said alining channels.

In testimony whereofI aflix in presence of two witnesses.-

WILLI A. PRAHL.

my signature Witnesses ERNA PRAHL, MARIE PRAHL.

Copies of this patent inay be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatents,

Washington, D. 0.

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